Potted film reviews by Gary Anthony Cross

The Wolverine (2013)

Logan has renounced violence after the death of Jean Grey but becomes embroiled in the affairs of The Yakuza whilst protecting a dying friend’s granddaughter in Japan.

The original Wolverine mini-series by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller has always been ripe for a big screen interpretation and although The Wolverine is hardly a faithful adaptation, it does contain enough of its elements to do it some small justice. It’s essentially just another “damsel in distress” story, but the Wolverine character is finally done with a grittier, harder edge despite the still frankly implausible lack of blood involved. The backdrop of Japanese culture makes for an interesting “stranger in a strange land” flavour and it’s nice to see an episode from Logan’s past play out. Although James Mangold is hardly a top-tier talent, he handles the action well enough and it’s a very nice looking film that entertains through to the end.

The only spectre that lurks over the proceedings is the McQuarrie/Aronofsky film that could have been, but as a whole it’s a good, solid action thriller and a big improvement over Wolverine: Origins.